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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25468663">Perfect Fit</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/capn_fuzzy/pseuds/capn_fuzzy'>capn_fuzzy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hannibal (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Brief Description of Blood, Cannibalism, Fluff, Hannibal Lecter Loves Will Graham, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Murder, Murder Husbands, Weddings, Will Graham Loves Hannibal Lecter, impromptu wedding, no really Hannibal commits murder to make Will his husband</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 11:15:38</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,273</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25468663</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/capn_fuzzy/pseuds/capn_fuzzy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Most people had the luxury of being able to waltz into their local jeweler and purchase an engagement ring for their beloved, or enter in their credit card information to order one online.</p>
<p>Hannibal Lecter was not most people.</p>
<p>Or, Hannibal has to get creative with his plans to propose to Will.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>268</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Perfect Fit</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Most people had the luxury of being able to waltz into their local jeweler and purchase an engagement ring for their beloved, or enter in their credit card information to order one online. Most people were not Hannibal Lecter. Oh, sure, he could definitely have afforded to get Will the type of ring he deserved, as well as pay for an extravagant wedding ceremony at some exotic destination. However, being arguably the two most wanted men on the east coast made such plans rather difficult. So he had to improvise.</p>
<p>Hannibal knelt in front of the body of his latest victim, a lovely young red-haired woman, recently engaged herself. He only allowed himself a moment to dwell on the fact that she'd never see her wedding day, but...well, her hands were roughly the same size as Will's, and...</p>
<p>Oh, no, he thought to himself, this ring wasn't going to do at all. It was lovely, and had quite an impressive stone set in it, but...it wasn't exactly befitting of Will. He deserved a beautiful ring, of course, but he was also a practical man who, much like Hannibal himself, worked a lot with his hands. He couldn't very well propose to him with a big, flashy rock like this. So he left the ring on the woman's hand, careful not to leave fingerprints.</p>
<p>Perhaps next time, he told himself as he snuck out through the back door, careful not to trigger the home security system or alert any neighbors. Seventh time's the charm, right?</p>
<p>~~</p>
<p>“Have you found anything to tie all these victims together yet?” Jack asked as he walked into the morgue. “The sooner we find a connection the sooner we catch this killer. We've got six bodies already.</p>
<p>“Well, we still haven't been able to establish a clear pattern,” Price said. “No obvious similarities tying the victims together, no specific gender, race, or age demographic being targeted...in fact, it's almost like the variety is intentional in itself.”</p>
<p>“There is one thing,” Zeller chimed in, looking up from the young woman lying on the table. “All victims were either engaged or recently married. At first we thought robbery could be the motive, but they all still had their rings...” He paused before continuing. “I did notice all of them have similarly sized hands...”</p>
<p>This is exactly the type of case Will would be able to help solve, Jack couldn't help but think. Since he had disappeared over a year ago, he'd managed to see most cases solved even without the help of his top profiler, and despite the overwhelming evidence that suggested otherwise—he was last known to be with an escaped murderer, sent after <em>another</em> known murderer, and had never returned, after all—he still hoped, deep down, that Will might still be out there somewhere. Regardless, even if the man was still alive, he wasn't here, and they had a case to solve, with or without his help.</p>
<p>“And you think similarity in hand size would be what ties these victims together?” he asked.</p>
<p>“I'm saying we shouldn't rule anything out,” Zeller said. “This is the kind of thing Will would have taken into consideration, right?”</p>
<p>Jack nodded, figuring that it must have been clear where his mind had wandered to. He cleared his throat and turned to leave. “I'll leave you gentlemen to your work.”</p>
<p>~~</p>
<p>Hannibal hid in the shadows, silent and motionless so as not to give himself away as the man he'd been stalking for the last few days pulled into his driveway. He was a tall, broad-shouldered man, possibly big enough to put up enough of a fight to be a challenge for Hannibal to take down. But he had thin hands for someone of his build, his fingers about the size of Will's, and judging by the way he spoke to his wife in public...well, Hannibal could think of someone much more deserving to wear the black and gold band on that finger than its current owner. He watched as the man exited his car and made his way up the walkway before stepping out of the shadows.</p>
<p>“Who are you? What are you doing on my property?” he asked, immediately taking a defensive stance.</p>
<p>“Forgive me for startling you,” Hannibal said calmly, holding his hands up where the other man could see them. “I was simply looking for a lost dog, and I thought I saw him run past here. I must have been mistaken; I'll be on my way now.”</p>
<p>The man eyed him suspiciously, looking him up and down in his plastic murder suit, and for a moment Hannibal worried he might have needed to come up with a better cover story. “Uh-huh,” he said. “Anyway, you're lucky I don't have my gun on me or you'd be dead where you stand. I'll keep an eye out for any dogs for ya.”</p>
<p>“Much appreciated,” Hannibal said as he started to walk back toward the street. He waited for his target to pass him and head for the door, then turned on his heel, knife in hand, and grabbed him from behind. The man put up a hell of a struggle, even as the blade made its way across his throat, but soon he went limp in Hannibal's arms in a bloody heap. Grateful that the scuffle didn't attract attention from neighbors, or God forbid, the man's family, Hannibal carefully dragged the body around the side of the house where he could finally get a closer look at the ring on his left hand. It had caught his attention at first sight, much like Will had all those years ago. The two outer bands were black stainless steel, with a gold inner band containing five diamond stones set flush with the surface. No protrusions that would break off easily, plus stainless steel was easy to clean and hypoallergenic. Upon closer inspection as he removed the ring from its former owner, Hannibal noticed something...odd about it.</p>
<p>It was a spinner ring. An unexpected feature, but not an unwelcome one. It would be perfect for Will to fidget with when his thoughts got the better of him.</p>
<p>After taking a moment to clean up and make sure no evidence would be left behind, Hannibal hid the body in the tool shed in the back yard and fled the scene, hoping to make it back to the cabin before Will to avoid raising suspicion.</p>
<p>~~</p>
<p>There were few times in Hannibal's life where he felt legitimately nervous about something. But as he waited for Will to get home, the ring in his pocket and dinner in the oven (his most recent victim ended up providing more than the ring, it turned out), he felt a sense of unease in the pit of his stomach.</p>
<p>It wasn't that he didn't think Will would accept his proposal—on the contrary, he knew beyond a shadow of doubt that he would. But Hannibal had never let anyone get this close to him, had never wanted to get this close to anyone in return. And something within him was unable to form the words in his mind to ask Will, going over the scene over and over and always picturing himself rendered speechless, clutching at the ring in his pocket, unable to actually do with it what he intended to do.</p>
<p>His train of thought was interrupted by the front door opening and the sound of Will simultaneously toeing off his work boots at the door and greeting the dogs. He cursed under his breath and stood up, smoothing out the nonexistent wrinkles in his waistcoat as he went to greet him.</p>
<p>“Welcome home, Will,” he said, giving him what he hoped was a casual grin. “How was work?”</p>
<p>Will eyed him suspiciously. “It was...the same as usual,” he said. “There's not much exciting about fixing boat motors all day. Is...there something you need to talk about? You seem off...”</p>
<p>Hannibal blinked and shook his head. “No, nothing's wrong,” he insisted, reaching down to feel at the ring in his pocket again when Will took both of his hands in his own.</p>
<p>“I didn't ask if something was wrong, I asked if there was something you needed to talk to me about,” he said. “And don't tell me you just misspoke, I know how deliberate you are with your choice in words.” He leaned in for a kiss, keeping their bodies at a distance so as not to touch Hannibal's expensive suit with his dirty work clothes, and waited for him to speak. When he didn't, Will decided to drop the subject for now. “Dinner smells great; what are we having?”</p>
<p>That got Hannibal to smile again, an eager twinkle in his eye. “It's a surprise, but I planned something special for us tonight. Go get changed, it should be nearly ready by the time you are.”</p>
<p>Will nodded and gave him another peck on the lips before leaving for the bedroom. Hannibal took the time to go and set the table. The cabin wasn't nearly as spacious as his home in Baltimore, but it still had a reasonably sized dining room for Will and himself, and the kitchen had plenty of room for him to store everything he needed to cook for them. He put a place setting at their usual spots, debating whether to just place the ring next to Will's glass and let him put the pieces together without a word. No, he told himself, he had to do this properly. Once everything was set on the table, and the candle in the centerpiece lit, he went to the kitchen to check on dinner. He'd prepared a stew from his victim's kidneys and a selection of seasonal vegetables and braised his heart in red wine, and for dessert he made a mixed berry cheesecake, Will's favorite. The cheesecake was already done and chilling in the icebox, and everything else just needed a few more minutes before it was ready, and simply needed to be served up. As he reached for a ladle to dish out the stew, Will stepped in from the hallway, freshly showered and clad only in a pair of dress slacks and an unbuttoned dress shirt. He fumbled with the buttons as he leaned against the kitchen counter.</p>
<p>“I know, I know, I'm half-naked,” he said before Hannibal could chastise him for coming in for dinner in his state of undress. “I guess I just couldn't wait to see what you had planned.” He gave him a small smile as he tucked his shirt into the waistband of his slacks and fiddled with the cuffs of his sleeves. “And I was still a little worried about the way you were acting. You know you can talk to me about anything, right?”</p>
<p>Hannibal sighed and set the two bowls down on the counter, ladling equal portions of stew into each of them before setting the pot back down on the stove. “Yes, Will, thank you,” he said. “I have had a lot on my mind today, but I assure you it's nothing you need to worry about. In fact...” He paused for a moment, reaching into his pocket to fiddle with the ring, making sure that it was still there and hadn't dematerialized in the 45 minutes since he'd last felt it. “I've been doing a lot of thinking over the last several weeks. Months, really...about us, and about our future...”</p>
<p>Will tilted his head to the side curiously. “Our...future? Hannibal, we're wanted men, it's hard to plan much of a future beyond...well, the two of us.”</p>
<p>“I know,” Hannibal said. “And I also know that us constantly being on the run, having to conceal our identities and be seen in public as little as possible might make what I'm about to ask you a little...<em>difficult,</em> in the traditional sense, so really, this is more symbolic than anything, but...” He took a deep breath and held Will's left hand as he got down on one knee, then looked up into his eyes. “Will Graham, will you do me the honor of marrying me?”</p>
<p>There was silence for a few moments; Will stood frozen in place as Hannibal held his hand, holding a sleek, black and gold band in his free hand. He briefly wondered where he'd gotten it, but ultimately, he decided, it didn't matter in this moment. Finally, he nodded, giving Hannibal a shaky smile. “Yes, of course I will,” he said in a whisper. “I thought that night on the cliff already sort of sealed the <em>till death do us part</em> thing...that was, in a way, my saying I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you, right?”</p>
<p>Hannibal chuckled as he slipped the ring onto Will's trembling finger, pleased to find that it was a perfect fit. “I suppose you're right,” he said. “But now we have a physical reminder of that promise.”</p>
<p>“You mean besides the collection of scars we both got from that fall?” Will teased, earning him an eye roll. “It's a perfect reminder, thank you,” he added after a moment, admiring the ring and sliding the center band back and forth experimentally. “Now, am I going to have to kill someone for your ring? Do you have a date set, so I know to plan accordingly?”</p>
<p>Hannibal stood back up and wrapped his arms around Will's waist, kissing him deeply. “No rush, my love, you can take all the time you need,” he said. “Besides, it's not as if either of us wouldn't noticeably stick out in most churches in the area, and we can't very well go to the courthouse and get a marriage license. We'll need to do some planning...”</p>
<p>~~</p>
<p>A few months had passed since Hannibal's proposal, and while they hadn't done a lot of talking about their upcoming “wedding” in more recent weeks, Will was starting to fret that he hadn't found a suitable ring for Hannibal yet. He'd made his fiance's eyes light up presenting him with the body of his last kill, a man who had the <em>audacity</em> to let his gaze linger on Hannibal a second or two too long for Will's liking, but his victim appeared to be single and had no jewelry on him, save for a piercing in his right ear. He made a mental note to keep an eye out for potential targets during their trip to the art gallery tonight, he told himself.</p>
<p>As he got out of the shower and went to the bedroom to get dressed, he thought he heard Hannibal calling him from the kitchen. He put on a clean pair of boxers and a t-shirt and went to see what he wanted. To his surprise, there stood Hannibal, dressed to the nines as usual. It was a bit unusual to see him fully dressed this early in the morning on a Sunday; he usually stayed in his silk pajama pants or his robe until at least after breakfast. But the most surprising part wasn't what Hannibal was wearing; it was the ornately decorated cake sitting on the counter.</p>
<p>“Hannibal...what is this?” he asked, looking back and forth between the cake and his fiance.</p>
<p>“Our wedding,” Hannibal replied simply. “I made this while you were sleeping.”</p>
<p>Will blinked. He thought he'd heard movement during the night, though it certainly wasn't unusual for him to wake up to an empty bed... “But I haven't gotten you a ring yet...not to mention I'm not dressed...”</p>
<p>Hannibal took a step forward, put his hand in Will's messy curls, and kissed his forehead. “We can find a nice matching set when we take our honeymoon. I just didn't want to go another day without being able to call you my husband,” he said, his tone gentle. “Breakfast is almost ready too, and I can put some coffee on while you get dressed. Although, I wouldn't be opposed to proceeding like this...”</p>
<p>Will laughed, feeling himself melt into Hannibal's touch. “As much as I know you'd like to see it,” he said, “I'm not marrying you in my underwear.” He leaned in for another kiss and pulled away. “I'll be right back.” He turned on his heel and felt Hannibal's eyes on him as he walked away, and once he got to the bedroom he found the nicest suit he had, tucked into the back of their shared closet. Just as he was finishing getting ready, he could hear music starting to play in the kitchen. <em>Of course he'd plan that much too,</em> Will told himself with a smirk. He straightened his tie one final time before heading back to the kitchen where his groom was waiting. Hannibal extended a hand for him, which he took in his own.</p>
<p>“Will,” he began, his dark eyes shining with the hint of tears. “I was intrigued by you from the moment we met, and while it's been a long, not always easy road...” They both chuckled softly, knowing that Hannibal was responsible for a lot of that, “...I'd do it all again to have you standing here in front of me today. I promise that I'll always protect you, and cherish you, and no matter what happens make sure you never go without food, shelter, or my love, as long as I live.”</p>
<p>Will promised himself, while he was getting dressed, that he wasn't going to cry, but <em>damn it,</em> if Hannibal wasn't determined to make him anyway. He gave him a shaky smile and took a deep, trembling breath. “You'll have to forgive me for not having my vows prepared ahead of time,” he joked, “since I didn't know I was marrying you until ten minutes ago, but...I've never felt more...<em>myself</em>, than I do when I'm with you, Hannibal. I feel a sense of clarity that I've never known with anyone else, and I never want to feel with anyone else. I promise to protect you too, and take care of you...” He bit his bottom lip, pausing to think of what else to say. “And if the feds eventually catch up with us, I'll fight tooth and nail to break you out again, as many times as I need to.” Will didn't notice that he was, in fact, crying, until he felt Hannibal's hand on his face, brushing a tear away from his cheek with his thumb. He felt a sense of relief when he saw him crying too, and he mirrored the gesture. They stood there, smiling at each other, before Will leaned forward to kiss Hannibal, draping his arms over his broad shoulders. Neither of them wanted to be the one to break the kiss, but eventually they had to come up for air, both men looking at the other like they were the only two people in the world.</p>
<p>“The last time you cupped my face while we were in a kitchen it went a lot differently than this,” Will couldn't help but tease.</p>
<p>“It can go there again, if somebody doesn't watch his mouth,” Hannibal shot back, though his eyes were full of nothing but love. “Now, shall we have breakfast, Mr. Graham-Lecter?”</p>
<p>Will looked over at the cake, and at the spread of bacon, eggs, and sausage waiting in a warming tray for them. “I guess I am a little hungry,” he said. “But if you bridal carry me into the dining room I might have to fight you.”</p>
<p>Hannibal grinned devilishly before hoisting Will up into his arms. “I wouldn't have it any other way.”</p>
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